Zhao Yong's forehead was covered with beads of sweat, and he stammered, "This... I don't know, it's all old news..."
"There are more old stories than this one! During the spring ploughing and autumn harvest period last year, some people in the workshop left the county town to go back home to farm, but the output of the cotton-tipped workshop did not decrease at all! In addition, last October, the cotton wool in the cotton-padded clothes and quilts of the Qingwu Prefecture Army came from your cotton-tipped workshop. But just after the New Year, I saw a report saying that the capital city mobilized a large amount of frostbite medicine for the Qingwu Prefecture Army last winter, which was dozens of times more than in normal years! Is there any connection between the two?"
Zhao Yong's arms trembled slightly.
Ao Huang looked at Fang Yun in admiration. This was not just about having a good memory. Without strong analytical skills, who would have connected an ordinary official report with low-quality cotton-padded clothes and quilts
Finally, Fang Yun sneered, "What's even more strange to me is that cotton in Michigan is harvested in September every year, so cotton is most expensive in June and July. The cotton in July last year was 30% higher than the cotton harvested in September! But just when the cotton harvest was approaching, your workshop suddenly purchased one million kilograms of lint at a high price, and there were detailed records of the entry into the warehouse. It was also clearly stated that it was transported by Songyuan Commercial Bank. What's strange is that I ordered someone to retrieve the carriage records of Songyuan Commercial Bank a few days ago. During those days, all the carriages of Songyuan Commercial Bank were used to transport grain, and there was no record of borrowing other carriages. How did the one million kilograms of lint enter the warehouse! Could it be that Songyuan Commercial Bank can already use Yinjiangbei to transport goods?"
Zhao Yong's face was as pale as wax, and sweat was gathering on his forehead. He instinctively wiped his forehead with his sleeve.
Ao Huang blinked, thinking that's how it was. Zhao Yong first took out a sum of money from the accountant who managed the Royal Workshop, but didn't spend a penny. He pretended to buy lint cotton, and then after the new cotton came down, he used part of the money to buy cheap lint cotton, and the rest went into his pocket.
Fang Yun continued, "As I expected, the money you embezzled from the depreciation of the agency and cotton last year was about three thousand taels. Three thousand taels is not much for me, but a small cotton spinning workshop only makes five or six hundred taels a year! No wonder the workshop you manage suffers losses every year. However, what surprises me is that your actual income last year was not three thousand taels, but at most five hundred taels!"
As he spoke, Fang Yun pressed his index finger on a piece of paper on the table and flicked his finger. The paper flew towards Zhao Yong.
Zhao Yong took it hurriedly. It clearly listed his deposit and withdrawal records in the bank last year, as well as the large expenses of his family. He felt dizzy and almost fainted.
"So, who got the remaining two thousand taels of silver? You are the owner of the royal workshop. Who has the guts to snatch money from you?"
Ao Huang suddenly realized and immediately thought of Zhao Yong's backer, the young prince Zhao Lu.
Not surprisingly, Zhao Yong was actually just a tool of Zhao Lu to gain profits from the royal workshop.
There are more than 70 princes of the Zhao family in Jing State. Excluding those who have no descendants, there are still 41 left. These 41 princes all have fiefs, and except for a few who have lost their wealth, their wealth is no less than that of the famous families.
However, the young prince Zhao Yu was neither the heir to the throne of King Qingyang nor the son of King Qingyang's first wife. Moreover, because of his young age, he was not granted his own property. His annual income was only two thousand taels of silver.
The salary given by the royal family to the son of a prince is not much, because if the salary is given to him according to that of a real king, the huge amount will become a burden to the royal family.
Two thousand taels of silver is a huge sum of money in Shengyuan Continent, but it is far from enough for a prince who lives a life of debauchery.
Zhao Yong was sweating profusely.
The most crucial thing is not that Fang Yun found out the problem between him and Zhao Lu, but that Prince Qingyang is very close to Prince Kang, and Zhao Lu had helped Prince Kang before.
There is no doubt that once Fang Yun conducts a thorough investigation, not only will Zhao Lu be severely punished, but even the reputation of Prince Qingyang will be damaged.
Zhao Yong knelt on the ground with a thud and said loudly, "Your humble servant Zhao Yong, I am greedy and have used the cotton-spinning workshop to make illegal money. But since I have surrendered myself, please be lenient with me, sir!"
Fang Yun said: "Your surname is Zhao, which was given by the royal family. How can you kneel down? Stand up."
Zhao Yong knelt on the ground and couldn't get up.
At this moment, Fang Yun received an urgent letter. After taking a closer look, he found it was from Zhao Hongzhuang.
"Do you... have anything to say?" Zhao Hongzhuang's message was simple.
Fang Yun was stunned, then smiled slightly and understood the reason. The urgent letter was Zhao Hongzhuang's way of expressing her concern about the matter, but she only said a short sentence, saying that she didn't want to influence Fang Yun, and she would not persuade or guide him like Cai He did, and would not put any pressure on Fang Yun, trusting Fang Yun's ability very much.
"The outcome will be clear soon." Fang Yun said.
"Well, then I'll go meet those relatives!"
Fang Yun smiled. Zhao Hongzhuang's relatives were naturally the princes and dukes from all over the place. Ordinary relatives would not dare to make trouble at such a time, and it was not worth it for Zhao Hongzhuang to stop them.
With Zhao Hongzhuang's presence, the pressure on the royal family will be reduced a lot, and Fang Yun kept this in mind.
Fang Yun also thought that Minister Jiang Hechuan might have known about this matter, but had not sent any letter yet, which made him more clever than Cai He.
Fang Yun originally thought that he would receive a lot of letters from aristocratic families or the royal family at this time, but there were not many letters from unfamiliar people, and those who did were very patient.
The tough measures these days have worked.
Fang Yun's hand left the official seal, looked at Zhao Yong below, and said, "It's easy to ask me to give you a light sentence, but the prerequisite is that you have to cooperate with me!"
Zhao Yong lowered his head deeply. He was over 40 years old and had been hanging around in the palace for many years. He was also the owner of a workshop. He knew very well what Fang Yun meant by "cooperation". He wanted him to explain all matters between him and Zhao Lu one by one.
The moment Fang Yun finished speaking, Zhao Yong had a naive thought that maybe he could deceive Fang Yun, but when he thought about Fang Yun's method this time, he felt discouraged and thought it was impossible to deceive him.
Zhao Yong gritted his teeth and said, "All the blame lies with me, but I can't remember many things!"
"It seems you are not cooperating. Very good, someone come!"
"Yes!" Then officers came in from outside.
Fang Yun threw the command arrow to the officer and said, "Go to Qingyang Guild Hall and bring over Manager Zhao from the Qingyang Palace! If anyone dares to resist with force, he will be killed on the spot!"
"Yes!" The officer took the order and left in a hurry.
Zhao Yong's face was full of despair. He had an extremely close relationship with Manager Zhao, but he did not expect Fang Yun to directly invite the most critical person.
The officers first took Zhao Yong outside, and then Fang Yun specifically invited the owner of a workshop in the county.
The abbot was in his early sixties, with gray hair, but he was in good health. There was no trace of fear on his face, just a hint of worry.
"His student greets the county magistrate!" This was a Tongshengfangzhu.
Fang Yun surprisingly smiled and said, "Master Liang, please take a seat first."
Master Liang was stunned, not knowing what Fang Yun was up to, so he had to sit down, but he only dared to sit halfway and was not brave enough to sit still.
Fang Yun smiled and asked, "Master Liang, how is your mother's health?"
Liang Fangzhu was stunned again. He thought Fang Yun would interrogate him strictly like a cruel official, but he actually chatted about family matters and was concerned about his mother's health. He immediately said carefully: "My mother is just old, there is nothing serious." (To be continued...)